FedEx Among Transportation's Biggest Movers on November 30, 2012

The market has been slipping so far today. The Nasdaq has fallen 0.4%; the S&P 500 has declined 0.2%; and the Dow is trading down 0.2%. The transportation sector is a category of stocks relating to the transportation of goods or customers. It is made up of airlines, railroads and trucking companies. The performance of the transportation sector is sensitive to the price of oil. Because operations revolve around the use of vehicles, fuel prices represent a significant cost to transportation companies. As the price of oil rises, transportation companies will be expected to earn less. Inversely, these companies do well when the cost of fuel decreases.

The Transportation sector (IYT) is currently lagging behind the overall market, down 0.9%, and its current biggest movers are:

After a precipitous drop of 10.4%, Star Bulk (Nasdaq:SBLK) is now trading at a share price of $6.65. So far today, the company's volume is 42,178 shares, 1.9 times the average daily volume.

Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro (Nasdaq:OMAB) is currently trading at $20.20 per share, a 3.7% increase. The company's volume for the day so far is 1,421 shares. This is a sign that there will be less trading activity than there was yesterday.

Kansas City (NYSE:KSU) has fallen 2.2% and is currently trading at $77.03 per share. The company's volume is currently 276,533 shares for the day, 0.3 times the current three-month average.

After a decline of 1.6%, FedEx (NYSE:FDX) has hit a share price of $89.35. So far today, the company's volume is 538,879 shares.

At $57.58, Kirby (NYSE:KEX) has slipped 1.3%. The company's volume is currently 41,768 shares for the day, 0.2 times its current daily average.

Slipping 1.2%, J.B. Hunt Transport Services (Nasdaq:JBHT) is currently trading at $59.09 per share. So far today, 247,535 shares of the company's stock have changed hands. This is a sign that there will be less trading activity than there was yesterday.

Genesee & Wyoming (NYSE:GWR) is down 1.1% to reach $72.54 per share. So far today, the company's volume is 51,874 shares, 0.2 times the average volume over the last three months.

The Bottom Line The nature of the market is such that stocks will have good days and bad days. It is important to weigh current activity against historical performance when making any investment decisions. Tools like valuation ratios and profit margins, however, are only as useful as the context you put them in; remember to take historical data and competitor performance into account.